With sunken tables next to a catwalk-like walkway and private rooms behind intricate floor-to-ceiling lattice screens, Dozo has all the right ingredients to attract Shanghai’s high rollers. Projections of its name swirl across chiseled stone walls and a steady stream of Korean and Japanese R&B blasts from speakers.
Waitstaff are impeccably dressed in oh-so-trendy modern yukatas. Our own waiter—sporting a jaunty Tintin coif and a ready grin—walked us through the extensive menu of elaborate sounding dishes. For now, the fare’s a bit uneven. The Dozo Caesar salad (RMB48) is a beautiful plate of carefully arranged greens, crispy lotus root and and one translucent, slowly poached egg. The flavors aren't as exciting as the presentation though. Our boneless chicken wing (RMB48) was tender and meaty but confusingly tasted more like a meatball than chicken. The special spicy tuna sushi are compact orange packages of spice and flavor (RMB88) finishing nicely with a smoky tang. The salmon sushi coated in caramel (RMB98) is buttery and rich but errs on the sweet side.
The biggest success of the night was the okonomi’yaki (Japanese pancake, RMB48). It comes in an iron dish, sizzling and aromatic, topped with swizzles of barbecue sauce, mayonnaise and a mound of bonito flakes. The rest of the dish is as rich as its topping. Gooey and soulful, it didn’t look very refined, but it was easily the most deliciously surprising dish of the night.
The evening finished with a deep-fried Japanese rice cake (RMB38). Crispy on the outside and soft in the middle, it's served piping hot with a scoop of vanilla ice cream. The meal was pleasant and the plating impeccable, but the flavors were too familiar. Dozo's regular patrons will likely be there for the space—not the kitchen.
Our rating: 3/5
DETAILS
What: Dozo Arigato
Where: 2/F, 1717 Nanjing Xi Lu南京西路1717号2楼
Tel: 3127-8558
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